DRAUGHTON'S Joe Throup, Berwick Intake Farm, judged the North of England Mule classes at last week’s Great Yorkshire Show.

He awarded the championship to Jam Robinson, Carnforth, whose clipped Mule geld hogg became the first-ever recipient of The Hannah Brown Memorial Trophy, presented by parents, Martin and Val Brown, Leyburn.

Sepsis tragically claimed the life of their young daughter in 2021 when aged just 26 and the couple, familiar faces at Skipton Auction Mart, have since done everything possible to raise awareness of the potential seriousness of the condition, particularly among farming communities.

The title winner went on to become overall commercial inter-breed champion, cementing Joe’s choice, who then awarded the Mule reserve championship to North Craven’s Chris Hewitt, Tatham, with a 2-shear Mule ewe with two Texel lambs at foot.

The ewe itself stood breed champion and overall commercial champion at last year’s Great Yorkshire when shown as a shearling by fellow North Craven breeder Graeme Jackson, High Bentham. Chris purchased the ewe privately.

Adjudicator Joe, another well-known face at CCM, is a long-standing NEMSA member who has been breeding Mules for four decades, establishing the Chelker Bluefaced Leicester flock in 1992, now running some 370 Swaledale ewes and producing around 340 Mule gimmer lambs annually.

He commented: “It was another excellent show of good quality sheep. The breed champion really stood out for me. She had everything a Mule should have – it was an honour to see and judge her.”

There was also a high profile Great Yorks success for former NEMSA national chairman and current CCM chairman Kevin Wilson, Blubberhouses, who first won the Open all-breeds non-MV ewe lambs pairs show class, progressing to stand over Inter-breed reserve champion with a brace of gimmer lambs by two home-bred tups, both sons of the legendary F1 Bighead. He also picked up three tickets in the main Mule show classes.